NOE NEWS April 2024
April 2024
Spring Is Close!
Welcome April!
We certainly hope you had a restful and rejuvenating spring break! Spring seems to be eager to arrive, but in Northern Michigan, any weather can happen within a matter of hours so keep those boots and snow pants handy for a bit longer! With spring around the corner, our evenings feel longer with more light. This can be tricky for children as their night time routines are still important for successful days. Sleep is critical and many kids want to stay out later and longer to play. Sticking to your family bedtime routine is important for successful days at school.
April's arrival also indicates to us at school the last of our big testing. Third grade students will be working on M-Step Math and ELA tests in mid-April and early May. This is the first time students will see this kind of State testing. Families can support their third grade students by offering words of encouragement, positive thoughts and affirmations about doing hard things, persevering, and ensuring students are rested and on time to school. Students in grades K-2 can support by providing positive words and quiet hallways. Our NWEA testing will be similar to the beginning and middle of the year, but we will see this for all of NOE, primarily in May.
As always, I welcome your conversation so please feel free to reach out!
~Mrs. Celeste Shiffer
Save The Date...
April 8-12 Book Fair
May 16 Spring Sing
May 30 We will travel to the auditorium to watch Mr. Jarve's Brass Quintet perform for us
May 27 No School Memorial Day
May 31 Field Day (June 3 is our weather make up day )
GRASP is available again this year to help your child(ren) avoid the “summer slide”!
We have made arrangements to acquire the GRASP program for you this summer. GRASP is a correspondence program for grades K to 8 which helps students maintain reading and math skills while they are on summer break. Your child will receive a book with nine lessons. If they are completed with at least 70% accuracy and returned to GRASP, your child will receive a certificate and medal! The cost is $26 for one subject, or $48 for both reading and math. The deadline to return the order form and payment to school is Friday, April 19.
Please click on these links for more information about the program and how to order:
GRASP Informational Letter and Enrollment Form
If you would like a paper order form sent to you, please contact your child’s teacher or the NOE office at 989-731-2648.
Counselor Corner
Children need knowledge and skills to protect themselves. As part of the guidance curriculum at North Ohio, a lesson on personal safety will be presented to all grades starting in the month of April. The lesson will help students recognize the difference between appropriate and inappropriate touch and identify trusted adults in their lives. If you have any questions regarding the content of this lesson, please contact the school counselor, Rachael Olson at 989-731-2648, ext.1631.
PTO
Our PTO would like to wish you all a very happy Spring! We are at work planning a variety of happenings here at NOE as the schoolyear winds down, including a sandbox refresh, our annual spring book fair, and everyone's favorite day at school - Fun Day!
We would like to invite you to check out our spring book fair, taking place from April 8-12th! Be sure to read flyers heading home for opportunities to win gift certificates to use at our fair.
Please join us for our April PTO meeting & Kids Club on April 9th, beginning at 3:15pm, to help assist us in planning our busy month of May!
We would also like to extend our greatest thanks and congratulations to all of our Read-a-Thon participants! We are always so, so proud of all the invaluable reading time recorded at home and the generous pledges received by our PTO, allowing us to continue our work. Thank you for supporting NOE! Pledges are still being accepted through April 3rd.
HUGE THANK you to PTO for the INTERACTIVE ANIMAL PRESENTAION we had to wrap up our March is Reading Month celebrations. The show was great; students and staff loved it. Thanks, PTO!
NOE Teacher Request Form
Grades 1-3 for the 24-25 school year.
GIS Teacher Request Form
For current 3rd graders going into 4th grade for the 24-25 school year.
Transportation
As a safety precaution we ask that NOBODY walk between the busses. It can be an easy short cut at drop off or pick up to walk from the sidewalk between the busses to a parked car on the street but this creates a safety hazard so we ask that nobody walk between the busses. Thank you!
STEAM Needs Your Donations!
Hello NOE Families,
STEAM is in need of some donations. We are looking for empty/rinsed soda bottles or sturdy water bottle containers (16 fl oz) for a project after spring break. Please send in any you have, we will need about 200 for the projects we would like to complete.
Thank you,
Heather Van Steenis
Reminder
Please remember that water is acceptable in water bottles; it makes spill clean up so much easier and is a healthy option! Students should not have pop, cans or glass at school. Thank you for supporting this from home!